BEIJING (Sputnik) — China strongly urges the United States and South Korea to immediately halt the deployment of the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system on the Korean peninsula, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said during a regular press briefing on Wednesday.
"China holds a clear and consistent position on its opposition of the United States deploying the THAAD system in South Korea. China strongly urges the United States and South Korea halt the deployment of the THAAD system at once and remove related equipment," Geng said.
South Korea’s Ministry of National Defense said on Wednesday that the four additional THAAD systems would be deployed on Thursday at a new base in Seongju, 300 kilometers (186 miles) from Seoul. The THAAD system may seriously damage the strategic balance in the region, hurting the strategic security interests of regional countries including China. However, Moscow and Beijing, alongside with other countries, oppose the THAAD deployment, saying it could further deteriorate the nuclear crisis and provoke North Korean aggression.
